Monday, November 26, 2012

New doll

Not new, exactly.
Perhaps I ought to say
'finished doll', as I made the doll ages ago,
and never knew what to dress her in.



Then I was given a 
lovely old handmade doily.
It had beautiful frayed lace
scraps of torn petit point work
and little triangles of white embroidery.
Too damaged to use, 
I salvaged what I could and
 it inspired the doll's dress.



So, now she's dressed in
 tea-dyed cotton, with cotton lace.
I'v used more vintage lace
in a dark ecru
and  tea-stained some Venetian lace 
for her overskirt.

Eleanor.





Polymer clay and cloth
About  10" tall.


There's raggy fragments of the lace 
on her long cotton drawers, 
and a nice piece
 draped around her shoulders.
I left the edges raw,
to show the scraps were
authentic and old,
so she has a 
shabby chic look.

She started out like this.



There the head is baked
but not yet sanded,
The arms are ready to bake.



This is her sewn into her cloth body.
It's limp, which allows her to pose 
in a very natural relaxed way.


I hope to find that chair she's sitting in,
as she does rather suit it.

(Forgive the ugly, horrible faux stone wall behind her.
I'm working on it...)


 I'm putting her up on Etsy, for now,
but I do need
to take some better photographs.

46 comments:

  1. Wow you are so talented....even little toes :) Her dress is gorgeous and I think using the old lace and petit point is inspired.

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    1. Oh! Mary Ann! You have me blushing! I'm really glad I didn't try and complete her earlier. She was going to be a Cinderella, and I'd even bought a tiny piece of silk noil in brown to make her a raggy dress. Maybe that's why I didn't finish her; she didn't want a boring old kitchen-maid's dress. She wanted to look pretty!

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  2. She is incredible. So real.

    And am I weird for really liking the stone wall?

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    1. Give me your address, you can have it, hand carried by Swedish parlour maids.

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  3. Gosh, you are good. She is so realistic it's almost scary.

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  4. she is very nice and looks real and a little wild...or its just my impression. great job!

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    1. She is, indeed, a wild little dreamer. it's those pointed ears under her hair. And thank you, I'm glad you like her!

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    2. oh well.. i think she belongs to the fields of flowers and shadowy forests... how is she going to stay in four walls? she needs freedom.

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  5. Replies
    1. Thank you, Elizabeth! Piecing together the dress was really fun, digging through my lace scraps and finding what would work.

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  7. Hi Rhissanna,
    Wow, your doll is darling, I love her. I love dolls, back a few years I used to make cloth dolls and enjoyed it so much. The handmade doily you used is perfect for her, great job, I admire your work. Thank you for visiting. Hugs...Lu

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    1. Thank you so much, Lu! Do you ever consider going back to doll making?

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  8. Thank you for stopping by, Bev
    I hope I can make three pink scarves over the next year for the 'Pink Scarf Project'.
    And I adore this new dolly you finished. You are very good at making hands. That is one area I have kind of avoided making. I think Sculpey clay works better than Paper Clay, unless there is wire and floral tape used before adding the Paper Clay.
    Can't wait for Miss Rabbit and her Alice doll to arrive!
    The anticipation is stupendous!
    hugs,
    Teresa

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    1. Oh, I'm following Miss Rabbit on her journey. I think she's in Jonesboro, Ar!

      As for the hands, thank you very much! I don't do cloth hands much. I do mittens rather than individual fingers, and I'm as impressed as heck by people who sew and turn teeny weeny fingers.

      When I started making dolls with paperclay, I almost gave up, because making the hands was so frustrating and I was worried they'd be fragile. In the end, I decided to make the paperclay hands a much more simple shape and now I like them like that. It makes them dolls, not realistic sculptures. After all, Barbie has pretty simple hands!

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  9. She is such a beauty, and so lifelike with those soulful eyes. You have dressed her to perfection as well. You are talented beyond measure. Amazing!
    Hugs,
    Patti

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    1. Thank you so much, Patti! I'm really glad you like her! I've joined her to your What's It Wednesday linky. When i get a chance I'll go and look at all the wonderful stuff other people have added.

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  10. Thank you for visiting Me,it allowed Me to find you and see your beautiful dolls.Love the dresses as much as the dolls-Denise

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    1. Thank you, Denise! Maybe I should make a Hobbit doll? It's probably about time I did. I just need to find a way to make furry feet!

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  11. Oh that is fabulous, I am a huge fan of yours and you have outdone yourself with this gorgeous doll. I love the bits of lace and the doily around her shoulders...Oh my great job!

    Carol

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    1. Thank you, Carol! Your pretty vintage dresses and antique finds were part of the inspiration behind her dress.

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  12. RHISSANNA! How nice to see your comment this morning! Thank you for your support in the ART OF MAKING MAGIC. I have to however, like all of us, need to make a living at this so reaching the right people is the next step. I have been really busy this week filling in an order so that is good! This doll of yours is ABSOLUTELY LOVELY and bravo for your accomplishment here! I have learned to appreciate the hard work artists do and I APPLAUD YOU ALL! Anita

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    1. Dear me, yes. But the Art Show will create ripples, and you never know which shore they'll wash up on. Congratulations on the order! I'll bet that's busy and fulfilling and exhausting and triumphant all at the same time. Thank you for your sweet comments about Eleanor. I learn something new with each doll, which is a source of joy in itself. (What did I learn from Eleanor, I hear you ask? That if a doll doesn't want a dowdy, frumpy dress, she won't let me make her one!)

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  13. She is so beautiful and she looks so real. I love her eyes.
    xxx
    Marlene

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    1. Thank you so much, Marlene! I'm glad you like her!

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  14. She's so graceful! And she has beautiful eyes :)

    How do you attach the polymer clay to the fabric body? She does keep a nice casual pose. Her dress is a great way of giving new life to things a little worn but obviously once much loved.

    (And I think that it's a given 'new doll' is crafter-speak for finally finished and decently clothed...)

    -Miss Magpie failing at signing in again!

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    1. Hi there, Miss Magpie! And thank you so much!

      Attaching the polymer clay head and limbs I finally got through trial and error. The wire in each limb is bent into a loop, after the limb is cured and painted and blushed.

      That loop is sewn into the stump end of the leg, which may be baggy to be a pair of drawers, or an actual leg shape. Then I add glue around the loop inside the limb, before I stuff it, and a dab is put on the joint between the top of the limb and the cloth. Makes no sense at all, right?

      Then the head and shoulder I either join the same way, but with more glue to keep the body and shoulders neat, or sew it on through pre-made holes in the shoulder-plate. The second method works better, the first is for exotic off-the-shoulder necklines.

      I used to have deep misgivings about working with glue, seeing it as a form of cheating. Then I made rocking horses for a while (Yes! I know! I wish I still had one!), and glue is a traditional and noble part of their construction. So, now I'm cured.

      Pass the E-6000

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  15. How wonderfully creative! My granddaughters would love to see her as well. Thank you for sharing on this delightful Pink Saturday post.

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    1. It's been so long since I went to Pink Saturday, I was so glad I did! Thank you for visiting.

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  16. wow, truly darling! glad i stopped by. happy pink saturday! xo

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  17. I love all dolls and this one is unique and very vintage looking with your lacy find! Thank you very much for sharing her. Have a terrific weekend.

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    1. It's always lovely to find someone else who likes dolls, too. I'm so glad you like little Eleanor here and her shabby vintage lace dress.

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  18. What a lovely doll! So pretty! Thank you for sharing and thank you for the visit and sweet comment at The Dedicated House. It means the world. Would love it if you woud share this at my Make it Pretty Monday party at The Dedicated House which goes live at 8am CST on Monday. http://thededicatedhouse.blogspot.com Hope to see you at the bash! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse

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    1. Oh, always ready for a party! Thank you and of course I'll be there!

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  19. You are so talented!

    I know from experience that sculpting dolls is extremely difficult.

    Wow!

    Beautiful work.

    *hugs*

    mo

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    1. Thank you so much, Mo! That's very sweet of you.

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    1. Thank you, T'onna! I'm so glad you like it! I was just lucky to have those pretty little scraps of old lace to work with. Piecing them together was lie making a little vintage puzzle.

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  21. Rhissanna, your dolls are beautiful.
    Thank you for linking up at Shabbilicious Friday.

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    1. Thank you! It's not often I have anything I can say is shabby chic, but I thought Eleanor here qualified with her vintage lace and embroidery.

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  22. Wow! The way you turned Eleanor into a fresh and a much prettier doll is incredible! I’m sure it became hit on Etsy when you posted it. =) The best thing I love about this doll is that even if it’s tiny, you still managed to perfect every detail, especially its fingers and toenails. :D How many dolls have you created, by the way?

    Chris Jeffery

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    1. Thank you, Chris! I'm glad Eleanor is completed; I felt guilty about her languishing away in her box just in her drawers. I'm have to admit, I have no idea how many dolls I've completed. There are about 15 or so of these little polymer clay ones around. I used to give them away, as I didn't have the confidence to sell them. Cloth dolls, there are a lot more.

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Thank you all for the wonderful and supportive things you say! I'm thrilled to read them and I reply to each one.